Agent Brett Carducci of Sovereign Talent Group said Hollywood has always been "a town of hustling." The crippling Writers Guild of America strike -- in its 10th week -- has forced almost everyone working in the entertainment industry to hustle for dwindling jobs like never before.
Unfortunately for actors who depend on the traditional January-April network-TV pilot season, there won't be much to hustle for. With few pilot scripts completed before the strike and writers unable to return to work, actors and their representatives are preparing for a dry audition season.
Actors continue to support the WGA in its fight against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers for new-media residuals; the Screen Actors Guild and its members played a major part in shutting down the 65th annual Golden Globes gala by refusing to cross picket lines to appear as presenters and nominees. With SAG's crucial negotiations with the AMPTP on the horizon, actors have a vested interest in the outcome of the writers' struggle.
Yet for actors and below-the-line workers, the bad news keeps coming. The clock is ticking for 1,000 Warner Bros. employees who have been told layoffs may begin this month. On Jan. 9, several International Creative Management agents -- including Renee Tab, Eva Lontscharitsch, Jenny Fritz, and Brian Levy -- became the latest strike victims. The agents were suspended with pay and benefits for the duration of the strike; the company also reduced salaries by 20 percent in its strike-affected departments.
There has been good news amid the gloom. Film production and auditions continue, and Worldwide Pants, United Artists, and the Weinstein Co. can now employ union writers, thanks to interim agreements signed with the WGA. However, none of those companies currently produce scripted TV dramas or comedies.
Carducci, for one, is staying positive. "You've got to work that much harder because there's going to be less, but there's still product out there," he said. "It's actually a good time, because there's a lot of time to read and catch up on a lot of stuff, as far as books and scripts and stuff that's in development. There will be less, but that's okay." He added that his clients are "survivors" and are not desperate for work.
Agent Adam Lieblein, president of Acme Talent & Literary, was less optimistic. "For actors represented by medium to small agencies, who are also suffering quite badly during this strike, this will be a horrible pilot season," he wrote via email. "The longer the strike lasts, the greater the potential for there being no discernible pilot season whatsoever."
Veteran TV actor Bob Clendenin, who currently co-stars in TBS's 10 Items or Less, said that even though studios stockpiled scripts in anticipation of the strike, many of those scripts cannot go into production during the strike and thus cannot be cast, because most programs' showrunners are members of the WGA. Added Clendenin, "It also gets very expensive to start locking [actors] down and juggling dates that you don't even know you're going to be able to meet. I did half an episode of Scrubs just before Christmas, because when the strike was called, they'd only completed half of the episode. [The producers] just said, 'Hopefully, we'll pick you up sometime in March or April when we can finish the episode.' It's really getting screwy."
However, Clendenin pointed out that with the advent of cable pilots that cast year-round, the traditional pilot season hasn't been as important for some actors for the past few years. Greer Shephard, an executive producer and director of The Closer and Nip/Tuck, said her pilots cast in early fall. "One of the things that the cable companies try to do is take advantage of all of the actors, casting directors, and cinematographers who are actually not working out of pilot season," she said. "The terrible thing about pilot season is that there is a drain of resources all within a couple of months."
Shephard recently finished filming the pilot episode of a new show for TNT titled Truth in Advertising, starring Monica Potter and Eric McCormack. Shephard and her producing partner, Michael Robin, are also developing a comedy titled Mrs. America. Other than that, Shephard is cooling her heels, because, per her contract with Warner Bros., she cannot receive new material during the strike. "There's literally nothing for me to do. I have no interest in producing any shows without my writing partners. We've made that point pretty clear," said the producer-director, who noted that future episodes of The Closer and Nip/Tuck have not been written. "I've been reading books and magazines and going to movies -- trying to pay attention to the Zeitgeist and trying to figure out what's the next set of themes I'm interested in."
Post-Strike Outlook
The question on many minds is what will happen when the strike ends. Shephard and Lieblein agreed the job action could change the industry for years to come. Shephard said an end to the strike in February could fuel a furious pilot season, as the studios will be flooded with new scripts in addition to those that were not completed before Nov. 5. "Networks have been threatening to do year-round pilots, and occasionally they do, but they still pretty much hold to the schedule. This may change that forever," she said.
Lieblein said up-and-comers will still be at a disadvantage when casting begins again, because name actors will be casting directors' first priority. "They will all be available, needy, and eager to get back to work. The developmental actors will take a back seat and have to wait a while longer," he wrote, also pointing out that networks have lined up more reality shows. "This reduces the potential number of roles, of course, which would continue indefinitely, especially when you consider that there is a possibility of DGA and SAG strikes on the horizon. When the strike ends, it cannot simply go back to business as usual. Many agencies will limp along for a while, and it may feel like starting over for some of them. Actors who were 'in the loop' of auditions may find themselves facing a tougher market, with fewer auditions, fewer employees at their agency, and a more stressed-out agent trying to console too many suffering actors."
'Let It Be'
Actor Kimberly Dilts moved to L.A. from New York in December to pursue more commercial and TV work. Although her manager, Erik D. Parks of Caliber Talent Management, warned her that there probably wouldn't be TV auditions this season, she's still glad she moved West. "I take a long view of my career," Dilts said. "In some ways it's better for me, because I don't feel the same kind of pressure. I now have time to actually settle and work on some projects that I've really been wanting to work on. I could be crazy, but it seems like a good time to find an agent."
Carducci said that despite the agency layoffs, seeking out a new agent during the strike is not crazy at all. His firm expects to be looking for new clients during the downtime and does not plan to let any of its current clients go. "It's a good time to maybe sign some more people, because it's not as project-heavy, so we have time to talk and meet new clients," he said. "With that being said, a lot of people don't want to sign, because...there's nothing to do. Well, there is stuff to do, just not as much." He added that his firm is developing new avenues for its clients to find work, but he could not divulge the specifics.
Dilts is also focusing on the positive: "My thought is it's a really interesting time to be here. What's happening now is incredibly important for all of our futures. I feel like if we have to give up a pilot season for writers to get what they deserve, then amen. Let it be."
Lauren Horwitch can be reached at lhorwitch@backstage.com.